Dog Flu

Staff: Mentor

I thought I should bring this to everyone's attention.

Dog Flu Spreads Worry Nationwide

Updated 10:51 AM ET September 27, 2005

A newly discovered virus has killed dogs in at least seven states, and veterinarians, kennel operators and pet owners are concerned because researchers say there is no vaccine and dogs do not have immunity to the new flu.

"The concern is that the dog population on the North American continent is wholly 100 percent susceptible," Crawford said.

Staff: Mentor

The virus, which scientists say mutated from an influenza strain that affects horses, has killed racing greyhounds in seven states and has been found in shelters and pet shops in many places, including the New York suburbs, though the extent of its spread is unknown.

The flu has killed greyhounds at tracks in Florida, Massachusetts, Arizona, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Texas and Iowa.

Staff: Mentor

Mk said:

Well, its obviously not very bad because they would say if it would soon be a world-wide epidemic and how some species of dogs will die out and everything.

How can you say it's not very bad? They just discovered it. It sounds extremely contagious, have you had a chance to read the article? I'm sure animals leaving the US will be under strict quarantine to prevent spread.

Staff: Mentor

Mk said:

Well, its obviously not very bad because they would say if it would soon be a world-wide epidemic and how some species of dogs will die out and everything.

The fact that the virus may have mutated from a virus normally found in horses is pretty serious. What if it were to mutate into a variant of influenza found in pigs (e.g. swine flu) or birds (e.g. avian flu).

Humans may not get 'horse' flu or 'dog' flu, but all it takes is for the virus to get to pigs or chickens/ducks/geese, and we might have a problem.

The dog flu is almost identical to a horse flu that's been in the U.S. for a long time.

Humans don't get the virus from horses. And they probably won't get it from dogs, says Ruben Donis, DVM, PhD, chief of the molecular genetics section at the Influenza Branch of the CDC.

The dog flu is known medically as the H3N8 influenza virus.

"H3N8 has been in horses for over 40 years. In all these years we have never been able to document a single human infection," Donis says. "That is not to say there isn't any risk. We will monitor all possible human exposures, but at this point there is no reason to panic."

Donis says the dog flu bug is sensitive to antiviral medicines. That means that if the virus did somehow jump to humans -- as it did to dogs -- it might be possible to contain it until a vaccine became available.

from WebMD.

WebMD also indicates

Dog Flu Milder Than Early Reports Suggested

The respiratory disease now known to be dog flu broke out among greyhounds in January 2004. More than a third of the dogs known to be infected in that outbreak died. Now that researchers have looked at more animals, the death rate seems to be much lower.

University of Florida veterinarian Cynda Crawford, DVM, PhD, has been investigating the outbreaks.

"Nearly all dogs are susceptible to the virus, but 80% will have mild disease: cough and maybe nasal discharge that will resolve over time with appropriate treatment," Crawford says. "Only a small number of dogs get complications such as pneumonia. … In dogs where the cause of illness has been verified, this disease has a 5% to 8% death rate."

and now it apparently has been found in 10 states, perhaps 11 or 12 if confirmed in NJ and NY.

According to a report from Crawford, Donis, and colleagues in the current issue of the journal Science, dog flu outbreaks have occurred at racetracks in the following states: Florida, Texas, Arkansas, Arizona, West Virginia, Kansas, Iowa, Colorado, Rhode Island, and Massachusetts.

How can you say it's not very bad? They just discovered it. It sounds extremely contagious, have you had a chance to read the article? I'm sure animals leaving the US will be under strict quarantine to prevent spread.

I read an article from Reuters, it didn't sound very bad. You make me feel bad!

A newly discovered virus has killed dogs in at least seven states, and veterinarians, kennel operators and pet owners are concerned because researchers say there is no vaccine and dogs do not have immunity to the new flu.

"The concern is that the dog population on the North American continent is wholly 100 percent susceptible," Crawford said.